Final Bracket Update- 3/15 Afternoon

1 seeds
UNC
Louisville (Big East)
Pitt
Duke (ACC)

2 seeds
UConn
Michigan St.
Oklahoma
Memphis (C-USA)

3 seeds
Missouri (Big 12)
Washington
Villanova
Kansas

4 seeds
Syracuse
Wake Forest
Florida St.
Illinois

5 seeds
Arizona St.
UCLA
Xavier
Purdue (Big Ten)

6 seeds
Gonzaga (WCC)
West Virginia
Clemson
LSU

7 seeds
Utah (Mt. West)
Texas
Tennessee
Ohio St.

8 seeds
Marquette
BYU
Oklahoma St.
Cal

9 seeds
Butler
USC (Pac-10)
BC
Minnesota

10 seeds
Siena (MAAC)
Texas A&M
Utah St. (WAC)
Mississippi St. (SEC)

11 seeds
Wisconsin
Michigan
Dayton
Maryland

12 seeds
Temple (A-10)
St. Mary’s
VCU (CAA)
Northern Iowa (MVC)

13 seeds
Western Kentucky (Sun Belt)
Cleveland St. (Horizon)
SFA (Southland)
American (Patriot)

14 seed
Binghamton (Am East)
Akron (MAC)
North Dakota St. (Summit)
Robert Morris (NEC)

15 seeds
East Tennessee St. (A-Sun)
Portland St. (Big Sky)
Cornell (Ivy)
Morgan St. (MEAC)

16 seeds
CSU Northridge (Big West)
Radford (Big South)
Morehead St. (OVC)
Chattanooga (Southern)*
Alabama St. (SWAC)*

*- play-in game

ACC- 7
Big East- 7
Big Ten- 7
Big 12- 6
Pac-10- 5
A-10- 3
SEC-3
Horizon- 2
Mt. West- 2
WCC- 2

In
Mississippi St.
Akron

Out
Florida
Buffalo

At-Large Locks (26)- 8 Bids Remaining
ACC- UNC, Wake Forest, Clemson, Florida St.
Big East- Pitt, UConn, Villanova, Syracuse, Marquette, West Virginia
Big Ten- Michigan St., Purdue, Illinois, Ohio St.
Big 12- Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, Oklahoma St.
Pac-10- Washington, UCLA, Arizona St., Cal
SEC- LSU, Tennessee
Others- Xavier, Butler, BYU

Last Four In
Michigan, Dayton, Maryland, St. Mary’s

First Four Out
Creighton, SDSU, Penn St., Florida

Also Considered
Auburn, South Carolina, Arizona, Providence, UNLV

NIT- 3/15

NIT
1- Florida, Penn St., Providence, Arizona
2- South Carolina, Creighton, SDSU, Auburn
3- Virginia Tech, UNLV, Davidson, Baylor
4- Kansas St., Miami Fl., Georgetown, Kentucky
5- UAB, Notre Dame, New Mexico, Northwestern
6- Tulsa, Rhode Island, George Mason, Illinois St.
7- Nebraska, Niagara, Cincy, Duquesne
8- Weber St., UT-Martin, Jacksonville, Bowling Green

Also Considered- Green Bay, Miami OH, UTEP, NC St., Washington St., Northeastern, Vandy, Arkansas-LR, Nevada, Vermont, Seton Hall, Houston

Bracket Update- 3/15

***Final bracket after the 1PM games***

Duke will get my final 1 seed with an ACC tournament title, if they lose UConn becomes the fourth #1.

Picking the final at-large team was a tough choice between Florida, Auburn, Creighton, SDSU, and Penn St. but I went with Florida. I don't think either SEC team is worthy but SEC teams have strangely appeared a line or two higher in recent years with the SEC commissioner on the committee. There is no reason to believe that a third SEC team won't show up during the selection show.

If Mississippi St. wins then they will replace Florida.

St. Mary's gets bumped up to an 11 because they were a 10 seed last year and this year they have a nearly identical resume albeit slightly worse (2009: 25-6, RPI: 47, SOS: 156; 2008: 24-6, RPI: 36 SOS: 143)

1 seeds
UNC
Louisville (Big East)
Pitt
Duke (ACC)

2 seeds
UConn
Michigan St.
Oklahoma
Memphis (C-USA)

3 seeds
Missouri (Big 12)
Washington
Villanova
Kansas

4 seeds
Syracuse
Wake Forest
Florida St.
Illinois

5 seeds
Arizona St.
UCLA
Xavier
Purdue (Big Ten)

6 seeds
Gonzaga (WCC)
West Virginia
Clemson
LSU

7 seeds
Utah (Mt. West)
Texas
Tennessee (SEC)
Ohio St.

8 seeds
Marquette
BYU
Oklahoma St.
Cal

9 seeds
Butler
BC
USC (Pac-10)
Minnesota

10 seeds
Siena (MAAC)
Texas A&M
Utah St. (WAC)
Wisconsin

11 seeds
Michigan
Dayton
Maryland
St. Mary’s

12 seeds
Temple (A-10)
Florida
VCU (CAA)
Northern Iowa (MVC)

13 seeds
Western Kentucky (Sun Belt)
Cleveland St. (Horizon)
American (Patriot)
Binghamton (Am East)

14 seed
SFA (Southland)
Akron(MAC)
North Dakota St. (Summit)
Robert Morris (NEC)

15 seeds
East Tennessee St. (A-Sun)
Portland St. (Big Sky)
Cornell (Ivy)
Radford (Big South)

16 seeds
Morgan St. (MEAC)
CSU Northridge (Big West)
Morehead St. (OVC)
Chattanooga (Southern)*
Alabama St. (SWAC)*

*- play-in game

ACC- 7
Big East- 7
Big Ten- 7
Big 12- 6
Pac-10- 5
A-10- 3
SEC-3
Horizon- 2
Mt. West- 2
WCC- 2

In
USC
Florida
Akron

Out
Auburn
SDSU
Buffalo

At-Large Locks (25)- 9 Bids Remaining
ACC- UNC, Duke, Wake Forest, Clemson, Florida St.
Big East- Pitt, UConn, Villanova, Syracuse, Marquette, West Virginia
Big Ten- Michigan St., Purdue, Illinois, Ohio St.
Big 12- Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, Oklahoma St.
Pac-10- Washington, UCLA, Arizona St., Cal
SEC- LSU, Tennessee
Others- Xavier, Butler, BYU

Last Four In
Dayton, Maryland, St. Mary’s, Florida

First Four Out
Creighton, SDSU, Penn St., Auburn

Also Considered
South Carolina, Arizona, Providence, UNLV

Bracket Update- 3/14

New Locks- Ohio St., Tennessee

I don't think Auburn has the resume to be an at-large team but I don't think the committee takes only 2 SEC teams especially with the SEC commissioner on the selection committee.

1 seeds
UNC (ACC)
Louisville (Big East)
Pitt
Michigan St. (Big Ten)

2 seeds
Duke
UConn
Oklahoma
Memphis (C-USA)

3 seeds
Missouri (Big 12)
Washington
Villanova
Kansas

4 seeds
Syracuse
Wake Forest
Florida St.
Illinois

5 seeds
Arizona St. (Pac-10)
UCLA
Xavier
Purdue

6 seeds
Clemson
West Virginia
Gonzaga (WCC)
LSU (SEC)

7 seeds
Texas
Utah (Mt. West)
Marquette
BYU

8 seeds
Oklahoma St.
Tennessee
Ohio St.
Cal

9 seeds
Butler
BC
Minnesota
Wisconsin

10 seeds
Dayton
Michigan
Siena (MAAC)
Maryland

11 seeds
Texas A&M
Utah St. (WAC)
SDSU
Temple (A-10)

12 seeds
St. Mary’s
Auburn
VCU (CAA)
Northern Iowa (MVC)

13 seeds
Western Kentucky (Sun Belt)
Cleveland St. (Horizon)
American (Patriot)
Binghamton (Am East)

14 seed
SFA (Southland)
Buffalo (MAC)
North Dakota St. (Summit)
Robert Morris (NEC)

15 seeds
East Tennessee St. (A-Sun)
Portland St. (Big Sky)
Cornell (Ivy)
Radford (Big South)

16 seeds
Morgan St. (MEAC)
CSU Northridge (Big West)
Morehead St. (OVC)
Chattanooga (Southern)*
Alabama St. (SWAC)*

*- play-in game

ACC- 7
Big East- 7
Big Ten- 7
Big 12- 6
Pac-10- 4
A-10- 3
Mt. West- 3
SEC- 3
Horizon- 2
WCC- 2

In
SDSU
Temple
Auburn

Out
South Carolina
Florida
Penn St.

At-Large Locks (24)- 10 Bids Remaining
ACC- UNC, Duke, Wake Forest, Clemson, Florida St.
Big East- Pitt, UConn, Louisville, Villanova, Syracuse, Marquette, West Virginia
Big Ten- Michigan St., Purdue, Illinois, Ohio St.
Big 12- Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Texas, Oklahoma St.
Pac-10- Washington, UCLA, Arizona St., Cal
SEC- LSU, Tennessee
Others- Xavier, Utah, Butler, BYU

Last Four In
Texas A&M, SDSU, St. Mary’s, Auburn

First Four Out
USC, Creighton, Providence, Arizona

NIT- 3/14

NIT
1- USC, Creighton, Penn St., Arizona
2- Florida, South Carolina, Providence, Virginia Tech
3- UNLV, Baylor, Davidson, Kansas St.
4- Miami Fl., Georgetown, Kentucky, UAB
5- Notre Dame, New Mexico, Tulsa, Northwestern
6- Rhode Island, George Mason, Illinois St., Nebraska
7- Niagara, Mississippi St., Duquesne, Cincy
8- Weber St., UT-Martin, Jacksonville, Bowling Green

Bracket Update- 3/13

New Locks- Oklahoma St.

1 seeds
UNC (ACC)
Pitt
Louisville (Big East)
Michigan St. (Big Ten)

2 seeds
Duke
UConn
Oklahoma
Memphis (C-USA)

3 seeds
Washington (Pac-10)
Villanova
Wake Forest
Missouri (Big 12)

4 seeds
Kansas
Florida St.
UCLA
Syracuse

5 seeds
Arizona St.
Illinois
Xavier (A-10)
Clemson

6 seeds
Purdue
West Virginia
Gonzaga (WCC)
LSU (SEC)

7 seeds
Texas
Utah (Mt. West)
Marquette
BYU

8 seeds
Oklahoma St.
Cal
Ohio St.
BC

9 seeds
Butler
Minnesota
Tennessee
Wisconsin

10 seeds
Dayton
Michigan
Siena (MAAC)
Texas A&M

11 seeds
Utah St. (WAC)
South Carolina
Maryland
Florida

12 seeds
St. Mary’s
Penn St.
VCU (CAA)
Northern Iowa (MVC)

13 seeds
Western Kentucky (Sun Belt)
Cleveland St. (Horizon)
American (Patriot)
Binghamton (Am East)

14 seed
SFA (Southland)
Buffalo (MAC)
North Dakota St. (Summit)
Robert Morris (NEC)

15 seeds
East Tennessee St. (A-Sun)
Portland St. (Big Sky)
Cornell (Ivy)
Radford (Big South)

16 seeds
Morgan St. (MEAC)
CSU Northridge (Big West)
Morehead St. (OVC)
Chattanooga (Southern)*
Alabama St. (SWAC)*

*- play-in game

Big Ten- 8
ACC- 7
Big East- 7
Big 12- 6
Pac-10- 4
SEC- 4
A-10- 2
Horizon- 2
Mt. West- 2
WCC- 2

In
Florida
Maryland
Penn St.

Out
Arizona
UNLV
Providence

At-Large Locks (21)- 13 Bids Remaining
ACC- UNC, Duke, Wake Forest, Clemson, Florida St.
Big East- Pitt, UConn, Louisville, Villanova, Syracuse, Marquette, West Virginia
Big Ten- Michigan St., Purdue, Illinois
Big 12- Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Texas, Oklahoma St.
Pac-10- Washington, UCLA, Arizona St., Cal
SEC- LSU
Others- Memphis, Xavier, Utah, Butler, BYU

Last Four In
Maryland, Florida, St. Mary’s, Penn St.

First Four Out
Virginia Tech, Creighton, Providence, Arizona

NIT- 3/13

NIT
1- Virginia Tech, Creighton, Providence, Arizona
2- USC, SDSU, UNLV, Baylor
3- Kentucky, Temple, Davidson, Auburn
4- UAB, Kansas St., Miami Fl., Georgetown
5- Notre Dame, New Mexico, Northwestern, Tulsa
6- Rhode Island, George Mason, Illinois St., Nebraska
7- Niagara, Green Bay, Cincy, Mississippi St.
8- Weber St., UT-Martin, Jacksonville, Bowling Green

Postseason Tournament Picks Part VI

ACC
Regular Season Champ- North Carolina
Predicted Tournament Champ- Duke

North Carolina won the ACC by two games over Duke and Wake Forest but it appears as though Ty Lawson won’t play in the ACC tournament so I can’t pick UNC to win it all. Wake Forest is extremely talented but is very young and has had problems winning away from home in conference play. Florida St. has the toughest road with a second round game against Clemson likely. Duke will probably play BC in their first tournament game and although BC beat them this season that game was at BC and since then Duke has beat Wake and Florida St. among others. I expect them to beat Wake Forest in the semis and then beat whomever they face in the finals. UNC, Clemson, Wake Forest, and Florida St. all have bids locked up. BC, Miami Fl., Virginia Tech, and Maryland all need at least one win to feel safe with BC looking to be the safest of the bunch.

Big Ten
Regular Season Champ- Michigan St.
Predicted Tournament Champ- Michigan St.

Michigan St. won the Big Ten by four games going 15-3 in the process. Teams two through nine are pretty even and each can beat the other so no road is easy. Although Michigan St. won’t have an easy road, a potential road of Minnesota, Ohio St., and Purdue is easier than any other team will have. Purdue will probably have Penn St., Illinois, and Michigan St. while Illinois could have to play Michigan, Purdue, and Michigan St. That coupled with the fact Michigan St. could be a one seed with a conference tournament win means Michigan St. is the pick. In addition to Michigan St., Illinois and Purdue have bids locked up. Wisconsin, Ohio St., Minnesota, Penn St., and Michigan all could use a win to feel safe and could still get in even with a first round loss. If Northwestern beats Minnesota and Michigan St. then they would be in the conversation and could get their first bid in the school’s history

Pac-10
Regular Season Champ- Washington
Predicted Tournament Champ- UCLA

UCLA should have an easy first round game against either Oregon or Washington St. They would then play the winner of the Cal/USC game whom they went 4-0 against in the regular season. So their path to finals is relatively easy. There a rubber match against Washington likely awaits and with the game in LA, UCLA is the pick. In addition to UCLA, Washington, Arizona St., and Cal have bids locked up. Arizona probably just needs to beat Arizona St. to feel safe while USC needs two wins to get in.

SEC
Regular Season Champ- LSU
Predicted Tournament Champ- Tennessee

LSU would have been the easy pick last week but they lost two to end the regular season and the conference tournament is wide open. Any of teams could come from off to the radar and win the tournament like Georgia did last year. Tennessee is my pick because they seemingly have the easiest road and they have the most talent of any SEC team but really any team can win. LSU and Tennessee are both safe for at-large bids if they need them while Florida and South Carolina both need a win to feel safe while Auburn needs two to get in the at-large discussion and Kentucky needs two or three.

Southland
Regular Season Champ- Stephen F. Austin
Predicted Tournament Champ- Stephen F. Austin

SFA won the automatic bid last year and they are the favorites to win again this year. All of their conference losses came on the road including losing games against their potential second round opponent and final opponent but I think SFA prevails against any and all teams in their tournament.

Bracket Update- 3/11

1 seeds
Pitt (Big East)
UNC (ACC)
UConn
Louisville

2 seeds
Michigan St. (Big Ten)
Oklahoma (Big 12)
Duke
Memphis (C-USA)

3 seeds
Washington (Pac-10)
Wake Forest
Kansas
Villanova

4 seeds
Florida St.
UCLA
Missouri
Syracuse

5 seeds
Clemson
Arizona St.
Illinois
Xavier (A-10)

6 seeds
Purdue
Gonzaga (WCC)
LSU (SEC)
West Virginia

7 seeds
Marquette
Texas
Utah (Mt. West)
Cal

8 seeds
Ohio St.
BYU
Butler
BC

9 seeds
Minnesota
Tennessee
Texas A&M
Wisconsin

10 seeds
Oklahoma St.
Dayton
Michigan
Siena (MAAC)

11 seeds
South Carolina
Arizona
UNLV
Providence

12 seeds
St. Mary’s
Utah St. (WAC)
VCU (CAA)
Northern Iowa (MVC)

13 seeds
Western Kentucky (Sun Belt)
Cleveland St. (Horizon)
American (Patriot)
Binghamton (Am East)

14 seed
SFA (Southland)
Buffalo (MAC)
North Dakota St. (Summit)
Robert Morris (NEC)

15 seeds
East Tennessee St. (A-Sun)
Portland St. (Big Sky)
Cornell (Ivy)
Radford (Big South)

16 seeds
Morgan St. (MEAC)
CSU Northridge (Big West)
Morehead St. (OVC)
Chattanooga (Southern)*
Alabama St. (SWAC)*

*- play-in game

Big East- 8
Big Ten- 7
ACC- 6
Big 12- 6
Pac-10- 5
Mt. West- 3
SEC- 3
A-10- 2
Horizon- 2
WCC- 2

In
Cleveland St.
Portland St.

Out
Florida
Weber St.

At-Large Locks (29)- UConn, Oklahoma, Pitt, Michigan St., UNC, Marquette, Xavier, Missouri, Memphis, Louisville, Kansas, Purdue, Washington, Villanova, Illinois, Clemson, Arizona St., Duke, LSU, Utah, Wake Forest, Butler, UCLA, Cal, Florida St., Syracuse, Texas, West Virginia, BYU

Last Four In
Arizona, UNLV, Providence, St. Mary’s

First Four Out
Florida, Miami Fl., Maryland, Penn St.

Postseason Tournament Picks Part V

Big 12
Regular Season Champ- Kansas
Predicted Tournament Champ- Kansas

Kansas has the easiest road to the finals. They avoid their two toughest opponents Missouri and Oklahoma as well as the two hottest teams Oklahoma St. and Texas A&M. They will likely play one in the finals but it is better than playing three of those teams. Look for them to play and beat Oklahoma in the finals. Missouri has a bid locked up as does Texas but it would be wise for Texas to beat Colorado in round one. Oklahoma St. and Texas A&M are also looking pretty good for bids but they should also win their first round games.

A-10
Regular Season Champ- Xavier
Predicted Tournament Champ- Xavier

Really any of these teams can win the A-10 tourney. Dayton and Xavier lost four road games down the stretch and Rhode Island lost a must win game to UMass to end the regular season. Temple might be playing the best of the top 4 A-10 teams and it wouldn’t be surprising to see them repeat but Xavier won the regular season title so they are the pick. Dayton is pretty secure for a bid as well and if Rhode Island or Temple gets to the finals then they could get a bid as well.

Mt. West
Regular Season Champ- BYU
Predicted Tournament Champ- UNLV

The tournament is at UNLV so that gives them an edge even though they finished fifth in the Mt. West regular season. To ensure a bid they need to beat SDSU whom they lost to twice in the regular season. I think they’ll win the third game since the game between SDSU and UNLV that was at UNLV was only a two-point overtime game. They would then most likely play BYU whom they beat twice in the regular season. They would then most likely play New Mexico or Utah and they beat both of those teams at home. It will be a tough road for UNLV but one they could navigate. Utah and BYU are both looking good for at-large bids while SDSU and New Mexico need at least one win.

Big West
Regular Season Champ- CSU Northridge
Predicted Tournament Champ- Pacific

No one really ran away with the conference as there was just a four game difference between first and eighth. Northridge won the conference by a game over Long Beach St. and Pacific and Northridge and Long Beach St. get byes to the semis. Pacific is the pick though because they beat Northridge twice and Long Beach St. isn’t playing very well of late.

SWAC
Regular Season Champ- Alabama St.
Predicted Tournament Champ- Alabama St.

All signs point to an Alabama St.-Jackson St. rubber match in the finals. Both finished the season well and were ahead of everyone else by several games in the conference standings. They played two close games in the regular season but Alabama St. was the regular season champ so they get the nod here. Any winner is likely headed to the play-in game.

Postseason Tournament Picks Part IV

Big East
Regular Season Champ- Louisville
Predicted Tournament Champ- Pitt

Louisville won the Big East by a game over UConn and Pitt but only played the Huskies and Panthers one time each going 1-1 (beating Pitt and losing to UConn) while Pitt played UConn twice and beat them both times. Pitt seems to always play well in New York and a Pitt-Louisville final would be a lot of fun as would Pitt-Villanova or numerous other potential championship games. Louisville, Pitt, and UConn seem to be a step above the rest of the Big East teams with Villanova a potential sleeper team to win it all if the fourth-place team and a current three-seed can be considered a sleeper that is. Almost all the games in the tournament will have significance with teams playing for NCAA tournament seeding and Georgetown, Providence, Notre Dame, and Cincy trying to play their way into the field

C-USA
Regular Season Champ- Memphis
Predicted Tournament Champ- Memphis

Memphis hasn’t lost a conference game in three years spanning about 60 games. They won’t lose here especially if they want to have a couple of statement games highlighting their candidacy as a one-seed.

WAC
Regular Season Champ- Utah St.
Predicted Tournament Champ- Utah St.

Utah St. won the conference by three games but ended the year in a mini-slide losing their last three road games (two conference games) including one by 13 at Nevada where this tournament is being played. Utah St.’s best and quite possibly only hope to get an at-large would be losing a close one to Nevada in the tournament final. That would give them 28 D1 victories against just five losses but depending on what other bubble teams do it may not be enough. That being said Utah St. knows it shouldn’t leave their tournament hopes up to the committee and they won’t.

MAC
Regular Season Champ- Bowling Green
Predicted Tournament Champ- Buffalo

Easily the widest open of any conference tournament. 5 teams finished within a game of each other in the regular season and all of them were in the same division. Kent St. was my preseason pick and they could certainly win it but Buffalo and Miami OH have looked the best throughout the season. Bowling Green was the regular season champ and Akron might be the tough luck champs of the year. They only lost one conference game by double digits and only four of their 12 losses have come by more than ten points. They lost by four points five times this year! However, the pick is Buffalo because it appears they have the easiest round to the championship game. They have a bye then will likely play Kent St. who they split with in two close games but I like their chances to win the rubber match then they will play a team from the horrible West division to get to the championship.

MEAC
Regular Season Champ- Morgan St.
Predicted Tournament Champ- Morgan St.

Morgan St. dominated the MEAC winning the regular season championship by three games. Upsets in other conference tournaments mean the Golden Bears could still get a 15 seed with the auto bid. Hampton appears to be the only team standing in their way since they lost to them twice but they would have to win twice just to get the right to play them for a third time.

Bracket Update- 3/10

Changes from yesterday's bracket:
Siena moves up to a 10 after beating a pretty good Niagara team for the MAAC's auto bid. This dropped South Carolina down to an 11.

Chattanooga won the Southern bid and a .500 record puts them in the play-in game. This bumped Radford up to a 15 and North Dakota St. up to a 14.

1 seeds
Pitt (Big East)
UNC (ACC)
UConn
Louisville

2 seeds
Michigan St. (Big Ten)
Oklahoma (Big 12)
Duke
Memphis (C-USA)

3 seeds
Washington (Pac-10)
Wake Forest
Kansas
Villanova

4 seeds
Florida St.
UCLA
Missouri
Syracuse

5 seeds
Clemson
Arizona St.
Illinois
Xavier (A-10)

6 seeds
Purdue
Gonzaga (WCC)
LSU (SEC)
West Virginia

7 seeds
Marquette
Texas
Utah (Mt. West)
Butler (Horizon)

8 seeds
Cal
Ohio St.
BYU
BC

9 seeds
Minnesota
Tennessee
Texas A&M
Wisconsin

10 seeds
Oklahoma St.
Dayton
Michigan
Siena (MAAC)

11 seeds
South Carolina
Arizona
UNLV
Providence

12 seeds
St. Mary’s
Utah St. (WAC)
Florida
VCU (CAA)

13 seeds
Northern Iowa (MVC)
Western Kentucky (Sun Belt)
American (Patriot)
Weber St. (Big Sky)

14 seed
Binghamton (Am East)
SFA (Southland)
Buffalo (MAC)
North Dakota St. (Summit)

15 seeds
Robert Morris (NEC)
East Tennessee St. (A-Sun)
Cornell (Ivy)
Radford (Big South)

16 seeds
Morgan St. (MEAC)
CSU Northridge (Big West)
Morehead St. (OVC)
Chattanooga (Southern)*
Alabama St. (SWAC)*

*- play-in game

Big East- 8
Big Ten- 7
ACC- 6
Big 12- 6
Pac-10- 5
SEC- 4
Mt. West- 3
A-10- 2
WCC- 2

In
Chattanooga

Out
Charleston

At-Large Locks (30)- UConn, Oklahoma, Pitt, Michigan St., UNC, Marquette, Xavier, Missouri, Memphis, Louisville, Kansas, Purdue, Washington, Gonzaga, Villanova, Illinois, Clemson, Arizona St., Duke, LSU, Utah, Wake Forest, Butler, UCLA, Cal, Florida St., Syracuse, Texas, West Virginia, BYU

Last Four In
UNLV, Providence, St. Mary’s, Florida

First Four Out
Miami Fl., Maryland, Penn St., Creighton

Bracket Update- 3/9

New Locks- BYU

1 seeds
Pitt (Big East)
UNC (ACC)
UConn
Louisville

2 seeds
Michigan St. (Big Ten)
Oklahoma (Big 12)
Duke
Memphis (C-USA)

3 seeds
Washington (Pac-10)
Wake Forest
Kansas
Villanova

4 seeds
Florida St.
UCLA
Missouri
Syracuse

5 seeds
Clemson
Arizona St.
Illinois
Xavier (A-10)

6 seeds
Purdue
Gonzaga (WCC)
LSU (SEC)
West Virginia

7 seeds
Marquette
Texas
Utah (Mt. West)
Butler (Horizon)

8 seeds
Cal
Ohio St.
BYU
BC

9 seeds
Minnesota
Tennessee
Texas A&M
Wisconsin

10 seeds
Oklahoma St.
Dayton
Michigan
South Carolina

11 seeds
Arizona
Siena (MAAC)
UNLV
Providence

12 seeds
St. Mary’s
Utah St. (WAC)
Florida
VCU (CAA)

13 seeds
Western Kentucky (Sun Belt)
Northern Iowa (MVC)
American (Patriot)
Weber St. (Big Sky)

14 seed
Binghamton (Am East)
SFA (Southland)
Buffalo (MAC)
Charleston (Southern)

15 seeds
North Dakota St. (Summit)
Robert Morris (NEC)
East Tennessee St. (A-Sun)
Cornell (Ivy)

16 seeds
Radford (Big South)
Morgan St. (MEAC)
CSU Northridge (Big West)
Morehead St. (OVC)*
Alabama St. (SWAC)*

*- play-in game

Big East- 8
Big Ten- 7
ACC- 6
Big 12- 6
Pac-10- 5
SEC- 4
Mt. West- 3
A-10- 2
WCC- 2

In
Michigan
Florida
Northern Iowa
Binghamton
Charleston
East Tennessee St.
Morehead St.

Out
Penn St.
Creighton
Maryland
Davidson
Vermont
Belmont
UT-Martin

At-Large Locks (30)- UConn, Oklahoma, Pitt, Michigan St., UNC, Marquette, Xavier, Missouri, Memphis, Louisville, Kansas, Purdue, Washington, Gonzaga, Villanova, Illinois, Clemson, Arizona St., Duke, LSU, Utah, Wake Forest, Butler, UCLA, Cal, Florida St., Syracuse, Texas, West Virginia, BYU

Last Four In
UNLV, Providence, St. Mary’s, Florida

First Four Out
Miami Fl., Maryland, Penn St., Creighton

NIT- 3/9

NIT
1- Miami Fl., Maryland, Penn St., Creighton
2- Virginia Tech, Georgetown, USC, New Mexico
3- SDSU, Kentucky, Davidson, Notre Dame
4- Temple, Rhode Island, Auburn, Cincy
5- Kansas St., Northwestern, UAB, George Mason
6- Illinois St., Nebraska, Niagara, Baylor
7- Tulsa, Cleveland St., Green Bay, Miami OH
8- UTEP, UT-Martin, Jacksonville, Bowling Green

Also Considered- Ole Miss, NC St., Washington St., Northeastern, Vandy, Arkansas-LR, Duquesne, Nevada, Mississippi St., Vermont, Seton Hall

Postseason Tournament Picks Part III

Summit
Regular Season Champ- North Dakota St.
Predicted Tournament Champ- North Dakota St.

North Dakota St. dominated the Summit in their first year as a full D1 member. They only lost twice in conference (@Oakland by 1 and Southern Utah by 5) but Oral Roberts who finished second will provide their toughest competition. The Golden Eagles gave the Bison two tough regular season games but the Bison prevailed both times. I think their third meeting will be more of the same.

Big Sky
Regular Season Champ- Weber St.
Predicted Season Champ- Weber St.

Weber St. only lost once in conference play which was at home to Montana St. They avenged that loss in their regular season finale by beating Montana St. by 20. Weber should cruise to the auto bid.

Bracket Update- 3/6

New Locks- Texas, West Virginia

1 seeds
UConn (Big East)
UNC (ACC)
Pitt
Duke

2 seeds
Louisville
Michigan St. (Big Ten)
Oklahoma (Big 12)
Memphis (C-USA)

3 seeds
Washington (Pac-10)
Wake Forest
Kansas
Villanova

4 seeds
Missouri
UCLA
Clemson
Xavier (A-10)

5 seeds
Arizona St.
Florida St.
Syracuse
Illinois

6 seeds
Purdue
Marquette
Gonzaga (WCC)
LSU (SEC)

7 seeds
Texas
West Virginia
Cal
Butler (Horizon)

8 seeds
Tennessee
Utah (Mt. West)
Minnesota
Oklahoma St.

9 seeds
Ohio St.
BC
Wisconsin
BYU

10 seeds
South Carolina
Dayton
UNLV
Texas A&M

11 seeds
Providence
Penn St.
Creighton (MVC)
Arizona

12 seeds
Siena (MAAC)
Maryland
Davidson (Southern)
St. Mary’s

13 seeds
Utah St. (WAC)
VCU (CAA)
Western Kentucky (Sun Belt)
American (Patriot)

14 seed
Weber St. (Big Sky)
Vermont (Am East)
SFA (Southland)
Buffalo (MAC)

15 seeds
North Dakota St. (Summit)
Belmont (A-Sun)
Robert Morris (NEC)
Cornell (Ivy)

16 seeds
Radford (Big South)
UT-Martin (OVC)
Morgan St. (MEAC)
CSU Northridge (Big West)*
Alabama St. (SWAC)*

*- play-in game

Big East- 8
ACC- 7
Big Ten- 7
Big 12- 6
Pac-10- 5
Mt. West- 3
SEC- 3
A-10- 2
WCC- 2

In
Texas A&M
Penn St.

Out
Florida
Kentucky

Locks (29)- UConn, Oklahoma, Pitt, Michigan St., UNC, Marquette, Xavier, Missouri, Memphis, Louisville, Kansas, Purdue, Washington, Gonzaga, Villanova, Illinois, Clemson, Arizona St., Duke, LSU, Utah, Wake Forest, Butler, UCLA, Cal, Florida St., Syracuse, Texas, West Virginia

Last Four In
Penn St., Arizona, Maryland, St. Mary’s

First Four Out
Florida, Virginia Tech, Kentucky, Michigan

NIT- 3/6

NIT
1- Florida, Virginia Tech, Kentucky, Michigan
2- Miami Fl., Georgetown, Cincy, USC
3- New Mexico, Rhode Island, SDSU, Northwestern
4- Notre Dame, Kansas St., Temple, UAB
5- Baylor, Nebraska, Niagara, Auburn
6- George Mason, Illinois St., Tulsa, Green Bay
7- Northern Iowa, Ole Miss, Cleveland St., Miami OH
8- NC St., Washington St., Binghamton, Jacksonville

Also Considered- Northeastern, Vandy, Arkansas-LR, Wyoming, Duquesne, Nevada, UTEP, Mississippi St., Houston

Postseason Tournament Picks Part II

MVC
Regular Season Champ- Northern Iowa
Predicted Tournament Champ- Creighton

Creighton ended the year winning ten straight and finished in a tie with Northern Iowa for the regular season title. Northern Iowa won on a tiebreaker and the teams also split in the regular season with each winning in the other one’s gym. Creighton is the pick year because they ended the year on a surge while Northern Iowa crawled to the finish line. Creighton is also in the at-large mix especially with the horrid play of seemingly all other bubble teams but they would probably have to reach the conference finals and lose a close one because their resume is pretty barren.

CAA
Regular Season Champ- VCU
Predicted Tournament Champ- VCU

The three best teams (VCU, George Mason, and Northeastern) all played horribly down the stretch and gave up any chance of the CAA getting two bids. ODU played the best down the stretch winning five in a row including wins over VCU and Northeastern. They split the season series with VCU, George Mason, and Northeastern so it wouldn’t be surprising to see them win it but I’m going with VCU because they have the best player (Eric Maynor).

WCC
Regular Season Champ- Gonzaga
Predicted Tournament Champ- St. Mary’s

Gonzaga is locked into the field regardless of how they play in this tournament after going undefeated in conference play during the regular season. St. Mary’s on the other hand while I think they get a bid if Patrick Mills proves to be healthy is the more desperate team. For them to feel safe they need to at least reach the finals and lose to Gonzaga. However, I think they will beat Gonzaga after being up seven against them in their first meeting when Mills got hurt and then losing by two in their second meeting. The second meeting proves they learned how to play well without Mills so with the addition of Mills, they will be the best team that they have been at any point of this year.

Southern
Regular Season Champ- Davidson
Predicted Tournament Champ- Davidson

Charleston is really the only challenge that Davidson faces as they were the only team to beat them in conference with Stephen Curry healthy. They lost to Citadel without Curry and looked horrible in the process but they won by 15 @Citadel with Curry healthy. The tournament will be played at Chattanooga whom they could meet in the finals but Davidson won at Chattanooga by 22 so that shouldn’t be too much of a challenge. If Davidson were to lose, I could see them getting an at-large since the committee will want Curry in the tournament after what he did last year even though they aren’t supposed to take that into consideration.

MAAC
Regular Season Champ- Siena
Predicted Tournament Champ- Niagara

Siena is the best team in the conference and they do have an outside chance of an at-large bid if they were to lose but they would be smart to take care of business. That being said I think Niagara is the hottest team in the conference right now and they just beat Siena by 15 so the pick is Niagara.

America East
Regular Season Champ- Binghamton
Predicted Tournament Champ- Binghamton

I originally wanted to go with Vermont to win the automatic bid but there were a number of reasons I can’t. The main reason is that star guard Mike Trimboli is doubtful for the America East tournament. The other reasons are that they lost twice to Binghamton and they would most likely have had to win at Binghamton to get the automatic bid which is something they can’t do without Trimboli and they also have to play Albany in the first round and the tournament is in Albany. They did win at Albany in the regular season but lost to them at home so the game is a tossup.

Northeast
Regular Season Champ- Robert Morris
Predicted Tournament Champ- Robert Morris

Robert Morris won the conference by three games and is the best team even though they stumbled a bit at the end of the season. Robert Morris will be home throughout the tournament where they went 8-1 in the conference regular season. That one loss was very early in the year to St. Francis of NY and they play St. Francis in the first round so if they get by them then Robert Morris should be fine.

Postseason Tournament Picks Part I

Horizon
Regular Season Champ- Butler
Predicted Tournament Champ- Wisconsin-Green Bay

Both Butler and Green Bay get byes to the semis where both will play at home. I think both win their semifinal game setting up a grudge match between the two. These teams split in the regular season against each other with both winning on their home floor. However, I think Green Bay wins at Butler because Butler hasn’t been playing as well as they were earlier in the year. So Green Bay gets the automatic bid and Butler gets an at-large.

Sun Belt
Regular Season Champ- Western Kentucky
Predicted Tournament Champ- Western Kentucky

Western Kentucky was volatile earlier in the season as they searched for its identity. They have beat Louisville by 14 and lost to Murray St. by 28 and Evansville by 32. However, since conference play started in full they haven’t lost a game by more than five and they won their final three games by double digits. They may play some close games but I see them winning three straight and getting the bid.

Big South
Regular Season Champ- Radford
Predicted Tournament Champ- VMI

Radford will be at home until they are eliminated or win it which is normally a good thing. However, all of Radford’s conference losses came at home (Gardner-Webb, VMI, and Liberty). They would only have to face one if they make it to the finals but that is where I think they lose to VMI.

OVC
Regular Season Champ- UT-Martin
Predicted Tournament Champ- UT-Martin

UT-Martin won the conference by a game over Murray St. and Austin Peay. The Skyhawks four conference losses came against teams that finished two through five although two of those losses came in early December. They finished 13-1 in conference and won’t have to play Murray St. (the team they lost to) until the finals but I don’t think Murray St. gets there so UT-Martin led by Lester Hudson is the pick.

A-Sun
Regular Season Champ- Jacksonville
Predicted Tournament Champ- Belmont

All these teams struggled to varying degrees down the stretch with the exception of Lipscomb who will also be playing at home throughout. Jacksonville gets a first-round bye meaning they only need two wins to get the automatic bid. Both those teams appear to be the best choices to win the automatic but I’m going with my preseason pick of Belmont who lost a chance at the one seed by losing to Jacksonville on the last day of the A-Sun’s regular season. I think Belmont is the most talented team as evidenced by their two point loss to Tennessee earlier in the year and they almost beat Duke last year as a 15 seed. The question will be how much they want it and I think they will take it.

Patriot
Regular Season Champ- American
Predicted Tournament Champ- American

American cruised through the Patriot League regular season only losing at Holy Cross. American will be at home throughout the tournament and I think they will make quick wok of Lafayette, Army, and Navy.

Ivy
Predicted Regular Season Champ- Cornell

Cornell was my preseason pick to win the Ivy and there’s no reason to change it now.

Bracket Update- 3/1

New Locks- Florida St., Syracuse

1 seeds
UConn (Big East)
UNC (ACC)
Pitt
Oklahoma (Big 12)

2 seeds
Duke
Louisville
Michigan St. (Big Ten)
Memphis (C-USA)

3 seeds
Washington (Pac-10)
Wake Forest
Kansas
UCLA

4 seeds
Clemson
Arizona St.
Villanova
Missouri

5 seeds
Purdue
Florida St.
Xavier (A-10)
Marquette

6 seeds
Illinois
Syracuse
Gonzaga (WCC)
LSU (SEC)

7 seeds
Texas
West Virginia
Butler (Horizon)
Cal

8 seeds
Utah (Mt. West)
Tennessee
BC
Wisconsin

9 seeds
Ohio St.
South Carolina
Minnesota
Oklahoma St.

10 seeds
Dayton
BYU
Providence
Florida

11 seeds
UNLV
Creighton (MVC)
Maryland
Arizona

12 seeds
Siena (MAAC)
Davidson (Southern)
Kentucky
St. Mary’s

13 seeds
Utah St. (WAC)
Western Kentucky (Sun Belt)
VCU (CAA)
American (Patriot)

14 seed
Weber St. (Big Sky)
Vermont (Am East)
Buffalo (MAC)
SFA (Southland)

15 seeds
North Dakota St. (Summit)
Belmont (A-Sun)
Robert Morris (NEC)
Cornell (Ivy)

16 seeds
Radford (Big South)
UT-Martin (OVC)
Morgan St. (MEAC)
CSU Northridge (Big West)*
Alabama St. (SWAC)*

*- play-in game

Big East- 8
ACC- 7
Big Ten- 6
Big 12- 5
Pac-10- 5
SEC- 5
Mt. West- 3
A-10- 2
WCC- 2

In
CSU Northridge
Alabama St.

Out
Long Beach St.
Jackson St.

Locks (27)- UConn, Oklahoma, Pitt, Michigan St., UNC, Marquette, Xavier, Missouri, Memphis, Louisville, Kansas, Purdue, Washington, Gonzaga, Villanova, Illinois, Clemson, Arizona St., Duke, LSU, Utah, Wake Forest, Butler, UCLA, Cal, Florida St., Syracuse

Last Four In
Maryland, Arizona, Kentucky, St. Mary’s

First Four Out
Miami Fl., Cincy, Penn St., Texas A&M

Also Considered
Georgetown, Notre Dame, Virginia Tech, Michigan

NIT- 3/1

NIT
1- Miami Fl., Cincy, Penn St., Texas A&M
2- Georgetown, Notre Dame, Virginia Tech, Michigan
3- USC, Rhode Island, Kansas St., Baylor
4- SDSU, Temple, UAB, Nebraska
5- Niagara, New Mexico, George Mason, Illinois St.
6- Tulsa, Green Bay, Northern Iowa, Auburn
7- Ole Miss, Cleveland St., Northwestern, Northeastern
8- NC St., Washington St., Binghamton, Jacksonville

Also Considered- Miami (OH), Arkansas-LR, Wyoming, Evansville, Duquesne, Nevada, UTEP, Mississippi St., Houston